Hello, this is my first post,though I have been lurking for a while. I have been scared, relieved, and inspired by so many things i have read here. There is so much strength expressed by everyone! I was braced for 2 years starting at age 12 and have had worsening back pain and an increasingly miserable back since then. I'm 42, working, and my back is now at 61 and 47 degrees (where is that little circle thing?) thoracolumbar curve. I have seen Dr. Errico, Dr. Lonner, Dr. Cunningham, Dr. Schwab, Dr. Propisaltis in NYC. I've been told it's inevitable and that I need fusion from T4 through S1, hoping it's only posterior but maybe anterior as well. I also have every kind of problem between discs: stenosis, spondylolisthesis, osteophytes, facet joint disease, etc. I've had every pain management technique done. I am not a fan of painkillers and try to avoid them. So I have been crying every day for 2 months at the thought of this surgery looming. I haven't officially scheduled it yet, but it will probably be in January or February 2015. I'm telling myself it will be a bad year, but that the next one will be better. I have 2 young children and the thought of not being able to pick them up, have them sit on my lap, rock them, bring them to school, participate in school functions, and scaring them with all of this is just heart breaking. I feel like I'm going to explode a bomb in their lives. I have a good support system and we will all cope together. I'm hoping this forum can add to that because no one can really know what it's like unless you've been through it.
I do have some questions. For those who have seen both, why did you choose Errico over Lonner or other way around? Any feedback on NYU hospital vs Beth Israel in NYC? Would you recommend a private room? A private nurse? (I almost died from a gallbladder procedure and no nurse was around. My husband literally saved my life, so I'm really uncomfortable with just being on a regular floor). Does anyone know the rates for those two things?
I'm concerned about the immediate and 2 month periods after surgery. I've read something about not being able to move your arms much, but don't know the details. Can you fill me in? Are you very bruised? (not that I will care, but I want to warn my family). Do you stay on your back in the hospital bed? I know they move you and want you to stand/walk, etc., but I mean times other than those. Are you flat on your back or angled? How long does the catheter stay in? Did anyone use an enema before surgery to avoid bowel problems? I know I will have many more questions, but these are the starters.
I'm worried about tush wiping. Anyone willing to say how the "assistive device" works? Was it awful?
What happens if you ever have to throw up the rest of your life? Strange question, I know, but we do get stomach bugs.
Did you find yourself inadvertently bending in the first few months? After all, it's a lifetime of habits to change.
Can you sit with your legs crossed?
Do you feel like your life changed into the "before" surgery and "after" surgery categories? Is one better than the other? I know what my life is like now, but not what it will be like, and I'm so scared to make that change.
How do people have sex afterwards? I've read all the info, and no doctor wants to talk about it - ugh! But it's reality, and it's an important part of married life (any life).
Any other words of wisdom? Anything you wish you would have known before you had the surgery? Any suggestions on how to prepare?
Thank so much!
I do have some questions. For those who have seen both, why did you choose Errico over Lonner or other way around? Any feedback on NYU hospital vs Beth Israel in NYC? Would you recommend a private room? A private nurse? (I almost died from a gallbladder procedure and no nurse was around. My husband literally saved my life, so I'm really uncomfortable with just being on a regular floor). Does anyone know the rates for those two things?
I'm concerned about the immediate and 2 month periods after surgery. I've read something about not being able to move your arms much, but don't know the details. Can you fill me in? Are you very bruised? (not that I will care, but I want to warn my family). Do you stay on your back in the hospital bed? I know they move you and want you to stand/walk, etc., but I mean times other than those. Are you flat on your back or angled? How long does the catheter stay in? Did anyone use an enema before surgery to avoid bowel problems? I know I will have many more questions, but these are the starters.
I'm worried about tush wiping. Anyone willing to say how the "assistive device" works? Was it awful?
What happens if you ever have to throw up the rest of your life? Strange question, I know, but we do get stomach bugs.
Did you find yourself inadvertently bending in the first few months? After all, it's a lifetime of habits to change.
Can you sit with your legs crossed?
Do you feel like your life changed into the "before" surgery and "after" surgery categories? Is one better than the other? I know what my life is like now, but not what it will be like, and I'm so scared to make that change.
How do people have sex afterwards? I've read all the info, and no doctor wants to talk about it - ugh! But it's reality, and it's an important part of married life (any life).
Any other words of wisdom? Anything you wish you would have known before you had the surgery? Any suggestions on how to prepare?
Thank so much!
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